Yee Haw, See Saw started with a simple prompt: to design a piece of furniture inspiring movement and play. I explored a bunch of action verbs such as ROCK, BOUNCE, SLIDE, and SWAY, and I quickly landed on the idea of a rocking horse, then stripped it down to its most essential form. I played around with many ideas, some safer than others, before finally committing to something steady, but not static. Then came more sketching, modeling, and hands-on playing ... I mean testing. The final piece sits somewhere between a stool and a sculpture, with just enough motion to keep it playful.
process
I started out with kraft paper sketches, exploring playful motions and sculptural forms. Then I moved into foam, paper, and MDF mockups to dial in proportions and the rocker curve. I whittled small wooden rocking horse mockups early on, which helped me explore form and motion by hand. I leaned into using wood’s natural grain, texture, and warmth as a design element from the start. I chose ash for its strength and clean grain. I used a Festool Domino to keep the construction tight, hidden, and durable by creating blind tenons.
Models and Mockups
JOINERY
I initially planned to use half-lap joints between the legs and rockers, as shown in the early 3D model, but I realized they might not hold up well to lateral movement and pressure over time. To explore the rocker shape more accurately, I sandwiched two pieces of MDF together and cut the top profile directly into the blank. This gave me a fast and effective way to test out the overall silhouette and curvature.
I shaped and refined different curves until I found one that felt stable, responsive, and playful. I tried several rocker arcs and thicknesses before locking in a geometry that swayed just enough without feeling unstable. Ultimately, I treated the rockers like ice skate blades and installed dominoes vertically to direct the force straight down. This approach gave the joint much more strength and stability.
Fusion360 Render w/ half-lap joints
BASS WOOD & PLYWOOD MOCKUP
FINAL ANgles & dimensions
Technical drawing for the final leg angles (80° and 100°), the radius of the rocker curve and the overall seat and base dimensions. I used this to check cuts and layout in the shop while building the final model.
More sketches and prototypes to lock in the final dimensions and angles. The seat is about 27'' wide and 10'' deep, with an overall height around 18''. These drawings helped me nail the proportions and layout before I committed to the build.
Materials & Story
The top is a slab of spalted cottonwood that I sourced from a tree that fell in my driveway a few years ago. I sealed the wood back then and air-dried it for two years before recently riving, splitting, and planing it down myself. Its wild grain and dramatic spalting made it perfect for this project each imperfection and void tells a story, like the unique coat of a horse. For now, the top is friction-fit with a hidden MDF plate underneath so I can swap slabs.
The legs are made from ash, chosen for its strength and clean grain. The rockers are cherry, which brings a rich contrast and warmth to the base. Each wood adds something to the piece, wether its structure, color and character.Together they help the stool feel grounded yet lively.
The Yee Haw, See Saw
